Oruka Therapeutics Completes Merger with ARCA biopharma and $275 Million Private Placement

Oruka Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology firm based in Menlo Park, California, has made a significant stride in the treatment of chronic skin diseases through its recent merger with ARCA biopharma, Inc. The newly formed entity will continue under the Oruka Therapeutics name and will start trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol “ORKA” as of September 3, 2024. Dr. Samarth Kulkarni, the current CEO and Chairman of CRISPR Therapeutics, has been appointed as the Chairman of Oruka’s Board of Directors.

In conjunction with the merger, Oruka completed a $275 million private placement. This investment round included both new and existing investors such as Fairmount, Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, RTW Investments, and Blackstone Multi-Asset Investing, among others. Post-merger, private placement, and a reverse stock split, the newly formed company has approximately 46.3 million shares of common stock and common stock equivalents in circulation.

Oruka’s CEO, Dr. Lawrence Klein, emphasized the rapid advancements the company has made since its inception in February of this year. He highlighted the assembly of a high-caliber team that has efficiently overseen the merger and the forthcoming clinical trials for their leading programs, ORKA-001 and ORKA-002. According to Dr. Klein, Oruka's drug candidates aim to provide improved dosing schedules and greater clinical efficacy compared to existing treatments for psoriasis and related conditions.

Dr. Kulkarni expressed his optimism about Oruka’s innovative product candidates, citing their potential to significantly impact the treatment landscape for various diseases. He praised the team's accomplishments and expressed confidence in their ability to realize the full potential of their programs.

ORKA-001 is a novel monoclonal antibody administered subcutaneously, designed to target IL-23p19. This antibody aims to offer a more effective treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Conventional IL-23p19 inhibitors, the current first-line therapy, require dosing four to six times annually and achieve complete skin clearance in less than half of patients after four months. ORKA-001, however, has the potential to be administered just once or twice a year, potentially resulting in higher rates of disease clearance.

ORKA-002 targets IL-17A/F and is also administered subcutaneously. Dual inhibition of IL-17A and F has shown high rates of skin clearance in psoriasis, making it suitable for patients with concurrent psoriatic arthritis or stubborn skin conditions. Additionally, IL-17A/F inhibitors have demonstrated promising results in treating other diseases like hidradenitis suppurativa and axial spondyloarthritis. ORKA-002 aims to offer similar levels of disease clearance with significantly less frequent dosing compared to current treatments.

Oruka Therapeutics is committed to setting a new benchmark in the treatment of chronic skin diseases. Their mission is to provide patients with conditions such as plaque psoriasis the highest possible freedom from their disease, potentially achieving complete clearance with treatments administered as infrequently as once or twice a year. The company's proprietary portfolio of antibodies, developed by Paragon Therapeutics, targets the fundamental mechanisms behind plaque psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases.